


Everyone Wears A Mask

by Jen425



Series: A Hundred Heroes Welcome You Home [56]
Category: Kamen Rider - All Media Types, Kamen Rider Ex-Aid, Tokusatsu
Genre: Canon Temporary Character Death, Character Study, POV Nonhuman
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:28:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28140909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jen425/pseuds/Jen425
Summary: Kiriya and what it means to no longer be human
Series: A Hundred Heroes Welcome You Home [56]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1782238
Comments: 8
Kudos: 13
Collections: Yuletide 2020





	Everyone Wears A Mask

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ozuttly](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ozuttly/gifts).



> Had some thoughts. Put it into fic form. They really need to talk about how Kiriya’s revived as the same creature as the monsters his murderer created.

Being a Bugster, Kiriya has to admit, is useful. Or at least it can be.

There’s teleportation, and he doesn’t have to worry about basic bodily functions… he doesn’t really need sleep except once a week or so, either.

That said, he also has to admit how disconcerting it is.

  
  
  


“Kiriya? You alright?”

And now another one: physical sensation.

Bugsters are video game characters, they heal fast and otherwise take damage differently. They are also made of energy.

Is it weird to refer to yourself in the third person? Possibly, not that Kiriya particularly cares.

He’s never been particularly normal.

“Kiriya?”

…Right, Emu.

“Sorry, Ace,” Kiriya says, pulling himself back to the present. “Just got lost in thought. You need anything?”

“No, I’m just worried about you,” Emu says. “Have you been avoiding me, lately?”

“I don’t know what you could mean by that,” Kiriya replies. “Just getting used to being back, I suppose. It’s a bit different.”

“I know what you mean, some,” Emu says. “It felt… weird, when Parado…”

He trails off.

“Does it feel like that for you, different?” He asks, and there’s something in his tone that Kiriya can’t quite parse. For someone so open hearted, he sure can be a closed book.

Kiriya shrugs.

“Maybe,” he says. “I’m fine though, Ace. I mean it.”

It’s not completely a lie, but it isn’t true either.

  
  
  


Teleportation, okay… that’s incredibly useful, but it feels odd. It feels exceptionally odd, in that it feels exactly like dying except it isn’t painful. But it still comes with the same feeling of fading to pixels, and Kiriya can be honest in his own mind, if nothing else.

He hates it.

He has gotten used to it, he supposes. But there is also a  _ reason  _ he’s so bad at teleportation. He can’t stick the landing because always, his thoughts drift on the way through.

Nonetheless, it’s things like this that remind him of his situation. He’s not really alive now, or at least he most definitely died, and he doesn’t particularly think he could tell anyone about it.

The only other human revived as a Buster is “Shin Dan Kuroto” or whatever he’s calling himself now, and that’s… well, the guy’s absolute batshit insane, even if he is unfortunately good at what he does.

Also, it’s the guy’s fault that he’s in this situation in the first place.

(He hasn’t forgotten who it is that killed him.)

Besides, they have bigger problems anyways. Like a game company CEO planning to take over the world by holding lives hostage.

  
  
  


“Do you know how to Costume Change?”

Kiriya blinks.

“Any reason you’re asking, Miss Temporary Nurse?” He asks. Poppy shrugs.

“I was just wondering where that outfit you were wearing while working with Chronos went,” she says. “Probably a strange thing to ask, what with everything that’s going o—”

“I don’t,” Kiriya interrupts. “ “God”’s dad bought it for me. Couldn’t say why.”

Probably because he’s somehow more or a nasty motherfucker than his son.

“Oh,” Poppy replies. “I could teach you, if you want. And if it’s not too weird, since obviously that isn’t how humans change… but I wanted to offer.”

Kiriya can’t help the teasing smirk that crosses his face at that. The teasing because it’s Poppy, the smile because without even trying she’d hit and deflected the issue.

He has to admit, though, he wonders what it would be like to spin into a new outfit.

“Something to look forward to when we win,” he says. “I can’t wait.”

“I’m… glad,” Poppy says, smiling herself.

They just have to win, first.

  
  
  


The sleeping thing… now that’s useful. Kiriya likes the chance to have more time. But then, he still has to contend with the fact that everyone goes home and he’s there “God” at CR.

Even that’s a further advantage in its own way, he supposes, because that’s how he learns Poppy and Parado aren’t dead just a bit ahead of the curve, even though he can’t possibly explain that to Emu yet, not until he knows it isn’t just Genm being himself.

Well, he is good at lies, and Emu is recovering from the supposed loss slowly. It’ll just take time.

Another advantage: it means he can deal with the paperwork involved in working on the vaccines for a computer virus.

Which for the record was never supposed to be in his job description, but, well, sometimes you’re a medical examiner, sometimes you’re a dead motorcycle working to find a cure for a disease that’s killed dozens and has a 100% fatality rate unless one of like. Ten people can operate.

It’s fine, really. He’s glad he can help so much, but it’s strange nonetheless.

  
  
  


“Need something, Doc?” Kiriya asks, not looking up from his computer. Half this coding stuff goes way over his head but unfortunately the Bugster Virus is as much a computer virus as it is a disease.

He thinks it makes the surgeon lurking behind him jolt in shock, he can’t tell.

_ Based on the software in the Mighty Action X Gashat… _

“I have a question,” Hiiro says, and so Kiriya decides to give up understanding this particular report for now and pay attention to the other person in the room.

“I figured as much,” Kiriya replies. “I know you’re up to date on the reports about reviving the loss, so what do you want to ask me.”

“What’s it like?”

Blunt.

In some way that’s preferable to Emu and Poppy’s prodding.

“To be a Bugster?” Kiriya asks. Hiiro nods, hesitantly. “It’s weird. Some advantages, some things that leave you doing a double take.” He pauses. “Oh, and it seems someone’s trying to call you.”

Hiiro blinks and pulls out his phone, then looks back at Kiriya, who just shrugs.

“She’ll be fine,” he says. “If it helps.”

  
  
  


It’s just…

Yeah, strange is a good world for it, advantages and disadvantages, the fact of knowing.

But he supposes he’ll get used to it eventually.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
